Metal Fittings With PVC 2729 6" Dust Collection Duct

Does anyone have any experience with using metal fittings with 6” PVC 2729 sewer and drain pipe for dust collection ductwork? I plan on using mostly PVC fittings but there are some metal fittings that would better suit my setup and they aren’t available in PVC. The questions is how to you mate up and join the metal fittings to PVC. Thanks! Chuck

5 replies so far

The 6” PVC will be 6-5/8 OD the metal fittings will be 6” OD. The step at the joint will a problem with the dust catching the step. I do not know of any adapters for pipe to duct. You might want to stick with one or the other.

I’ve done it. It’s not perfect, but it works. In the pic you see the 6” PVC going into a 6×7 transition, I needed 7” going into the cyclone. You also see the fitting is backwards, the air is heading into the male end. I taped the joint inside with foil tape to smooth it over. We get wrapped up a lot on perfection, but do what you have to…..it will probably work just fine. You also see the transition goes into a 7” adjustable el, and it pretty much locked in place with the same foil tape. The clamp is around the PVC because I put 6 slits in the end to force it over the metal, the clamp holds it together and silicone made sure nothing leaked there. Not pretty, but functional.

I saw a thread somewhere, probably on SMC where someone used a heat gun to stretch the plastic a little to make a fit. You could probably make a sheetmetal clamp with a couple bolts to squeeze the pipe down a little, and heat with the gun while you tighten the bolts. I have cut short pieces of pipe, then sawed a little off and used as fillers to reduce the size by a little. Also there are Fernco plumbing adapters that might work. I have metal ducting, and I used a hand held crimper to help me fit pipe together. Just remember to put the joint so the edge of the pipe does not point into the flow of air. A little scrap of wood could cause a plug in your system.

Have a look at this blog. I used stove pipe on my planer and the crimped end is a nice fit in my 6” underfloor PVC. It’s been working well for almost ten years. There are also some tips on making PVC “Y” fittings in another segment of the same blog that may save you some money.